FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM DECEMBER 27, 2018 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 47
buzz
Don’t go stir crazy! Queens off ers many
enrichment options over the holiday recess
BY ROB MACKAY
Queens Tourism Council
Th e youngsters are “home for the holidays”
Queens’ newest judge takes the oath in Kew Gardens
Lourdes Ventura offi cially became
a judge in the New York City Civil
Court in Queens during a Dec. 18 ceremony
at Queens Borough Hall in
Kew Gardens. Family, friends and colleagues
of the Richmond Hill resident
participated in the swearing-in event.
A native of Queens, Ventura graduated
from SUNY Buff alo and previously
worked in the Queens District Attorney’s
offi ce as a prosecutor and with the State
Attorney General’s offi ce in the Civil
Rights Bureau. Associate Judge Jeremy
Weinstein was among the many jurists
who helped welcome Ventura to the
bench.
again. No school. Too much free
time. Th ose darn video games.
Well, various Queens cultural venues
are ready to off er workshops, fi lms,
activities, and other enrichment activities
during the upcoming 10 days. Here’s a
guide to keep children – and their parents
– occupied, enthralled, and happy.
Th e Museum of the Moving will host
Winter Recess Family Fun on every day
through Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019.
Th e fi lm “A Muppet Family Christmas”
will screen in the Bartos Screening Room,
starting at 11 a.m., with complementary
drop-in workshops in the Digital
Learning Suite at the same time. (Patrons
don’t have to attend one activity to attend
the other.) Art and animation are the
focus of the workshops with puppet-making,
Japanese anime, and winter-themed
special eff ects on the program.
Th e 1987 made-for-television special
unites Jim Henson’s three major “families”
of characters: Muppets; Fraggles;
and Sesame Street residents. Th e museum
will share an uncut, 52-minute version
that includes highlights from other
productions. It begins with an unaware
Fozzie Bear driving some Muppet friends
to his mother’s farmhouse for Christmas.
However, his mom has rented the property
to two Fraggles, Doc and Sprocket,
who want to spend a quiet, relaxing holiday
in the country. Oh well. Muppet and
Sesame Street friends keep showing up.
Carols, a pageant, and a heroic rescue of
Miss Piggy follow. (Of course, Oscar the
Grouch hates Christmas and he’d rather
stew alone in his trash can.)
Tickets are $15. Th e Museum of the
Moving Image is at 36-01 35th Ave. in
Astoria’s Kaufman Arts District.
Aft er Christmas, the Queens County
Farm Museum is open on Th ursday and
Friday, Dec. 27-28, Dec. 28 – from noon
to 4 p.m.
Hot cocoa, mulled cider, and snacks
are on the menu. Plus, a guide will off er
tours of the Adriance Farmhouse, which
has NYC Landmark status and is listed on
the National Register of Historic Places.
Visitors will also be able stroll around the
property, which features temporarily dormant
growing fi elds, steers Jethro and
Dexter, and alpacas Giorgio and Rocky at
this time of year.
Attendance is free. Queens Farm is at
73-50 Little Neck Pkwy. in Glen Oaks.
Finally, it’s not too late to catch “A
Charlie Brown Christmas” at Th e Secret
Th eatre in Long Island City. Th e 16-show
run began on Dec. 14, but it will continue
through Dec. 30.
Featuring original dance and song numbers,
this musical follows the same plot as
the eponymous television special that fi rst
aired in 1965. Charlie Brown is upset by
the commercialization of Christmas. He
confi des in friends and joins the school
pageant, but he just gets more and more
jaded. Th en when it appears that all hope
is lost, he fi nds the holiday’s true meaning
with a little help from Snoopy and his
decorated doghouse. (Joe Cool saves the
day, again!)
Remaining show times are on Dec. 28,
Dec. 29, Dec. 30 at 7:30 p.m. Th ere are
also matinees on Dec. 29, and Dec. 30 at
3 p.m.
Tickets are $18 in advance, but $20 at
the door. Located at 44-02 23rd St., Th e
Secret Th eatre has a three-quarter-round
performance space with seating for about
100 people.
Charlie Brown fi nds the real meaning
of Christmas. (Th e Secret Th eatre) Th e
Adriance Farmhouse has NYC Landmark
status. (Queens County Farm Museum)
Workshops with ornaments and story
time. (Queens Museum)
Museum of the Moving Image
Party with Fozzy Bear at his mother’s house.
Photos by Bruce Adler
/WWW.QNS.COM
